Yes... This is Our Christmas Tradition

Over the past two Christmases, I have loved reading about all of your family's traditions. I can smell the aroma of fresh baked treats made by the hands of you and your children. The sounds of you caroling around the neighborhood and then finishing at a neighbor's home for hot chocolate and toddies are sweet music to my ears. Some of you go as a family to a tree farm in the country to pick out the perfect Frazier fir or spruce pine. Others fly across country to visit relatives where the snow falls magically from the sky.

A few have ended their posts with the question, "What is your family's Christmas tradition?"

You really want to know?

REALLY???

OK, this is what we do.

Every year, we pile in the car... go to Sonic and get the biggest Sonic Blasts possible (Yes, I know this isn't very Christmas-y.)... turn the Christmas music loud... and drive around town for the "Annual W***** Tacky Christmas Light Tour". Most of these lights are in this fabulous trailer park about ten minutes out of town. It takes about fifteen minutes to go through the whole thing, and it's just not Christmas until we take the tour. And we all yell, "Tacky Christmas lights! Tacky Christmas lights!" with glee when we arrive...

Of course I stopped in the middle of the road for this picture... 

And totally embarrassed J.

 There are about four of these donation mailboxes. 

This is the fanciest... The others are written on with Sharpies.

Lots and lots o' tacky lights...

And more and more...

Never knew the Seven Dwarfs were part of Christmas...

J made the very astute comment as we drove through the trailer park o' lights. 

"It's obvious that some of these people spend more money and attention on their lights 

than they do on their houses." 

(Before you judge, remember that this was from the mouth of a nine-year-old!)

By this time, Handel's Messiah was blaring out of the Frosty snow globe 

in the picture above this one...

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!
, Mike, and the boys

Tuesday's Kitchen Inspirations

 

So this watercolor isn't really in my kitchen, but I can see it in the great room from my kitchen sink!  And it does so inspire me and make me smile as it reminds me of that wonderful Saturday we get to experience every March.  Some of you may have already seen it from yesterday's guest blog Mind Your Manners' Monday: People with Disabilities at Entertaining House.  And I read so many sweet comments on it.  Thank you for being so receptive!  And thank you, my dear friend Jessica, for your support!

We love the Aiken Steeplechase in late March.  The weather is always so lovely with a gentle breeze and the azaleas beginning to bloom... I'm getting spring fever right now, just sitting on my front porch in a rocking chair, laptop in my my lap. Steeplechase is the perfect time to get out the Lilly skirts and Jack Rogers sandals.  Mike always wears a pair of loud (AKA obnoxiously preppy) pants... or shorts if the weather is warm enough.  One year, it was Lilly's pink and green giraffes.  Here, we have a classic and subdued (LOL) patchwork.

The boys love the races and have so much fun running around passing the hat for the bets on the horses.  I don't think we are contributing to the delinquency of our sons!

I love the beautiful tables and flower arrangements the women prepare.  The silver (or Mariposa) trays full of chicken salad sandwiches and fresh strawberries.  (You know I will blog about it later!)

And Mike... he just loves a good bourbon and coke!